In recent years, many school districts have had to make the difficult choice to eliminate art programs (drama, music, visual arts, photography, etc.) due to budget cuts and based upon state/national academic priorities that are more focused on math and English student achievement. The budget crisis came against the backdrop of the decade-long emphasis on math and reading as mandated by the federal No Child Left Behind law and other state initiatives and acts. For…
You can enjoy the water in many ways at Massachusetts state parks, beaches, and pools! Accessible beaches have boardwalks and beach mats to get you out onto the sand. Beach wheelchairs with balloon tires can move you across the sand, and floating beach wheelchairs get you into the water itself. Check out our list of accessible beaches and pools in Massachusetts below. After you find some accessible beaches you like, please check with that beach…
The Trump administration says it will stop paying out $1 billion in federal grants that school districts across the country have been using for student mental health funding, including to hire mental health professionals like counselors and social workers. The Department of Education is telling impacted districts that the Biden administration, in awarding the grants, violated “the letter or purpose of Federal civil rights law.” The grants were part of the 2022 Bipartisan Safer Communities…
The Trump administration says one of its primary goals in education is to expand school choice and put power back in the hands of parents. Yet it has killed the main way to track one of the most rapidly growing options – learning at home, or homeschool. The Education Department began counting the number of homeschooled children in 1999, when fewer than 2 percent of students were educated this way. Homeschooling rose by 50 percent…
There are many June activities for families to enjoy in the Boston area as we kick off the summer. Check out our list of June activities and events happening in the Boston area. ICA Playdate: Free Family Art Day, Free Sun, June 1, 2025 Take your family to the ICA for a full day of free activities at the ICA’s monthly Play Date, a recurring event on the last Saturday of each month inviting families to…
The U.S. Education Department’s role in helping students with disabilities may be changing soon. President Trump has said his administration is going to move “special needs” to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), an agency that recently announced its own drastic cuts. His administration hasn’t specified exactly which programs will be moved, and whether IDEA, the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act, is among them. The conservative policy playbook Project 2025 does propose…
What do the sculpture of Abe Lincoln, the Grand Canyon, and the ancient pyramids have in common? Well, someone familiar with geology sees granite, volcanic rock, limestone, and the Earth over millions of years–in other words, rocks. You can’t throw a rock without hitting another rock; they’re everywhere! Rock creates and shapes the Earth’s landscape. It forms our magnificent mountains, shapes the deepest oceans, and safely separates us from the boiling magma beneath our feet.…
As Education Secretary Linda McMahon was busy dismantling her cabinet department, she vowed to preserve one thing: the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP), also known as the Nation’s Report Card. In early April, she told a gathering of ed tech companies and investors that the national exam was “something we absolutely need to keep,” because it’s a “way that we keep everybody honest” about the truth of how much students across the country actually…
Those who journal are in good company; some of history’s greatest visionaries kept journals, including Ben Franklin, Winston Churchill, and Marie Curie. But aside from famous company, there are other important reasons for journaling. Studies show that keeping a journal reduces stress, improves focus, and boosts mood. A 2005 study revealed that journaling about stressful events resulted in significantly better physical and mental health outcomes for participants. With benefits like these, it’s clear why encouraging…
After a five-year hiatus, the U.S. Department of Education says it will begin resuming collections of defaulted student loans on May 5. Of the more than 42.7 million student loan borrowers in the U.S., who owe a collective $1.6 trillion, the department says that more than 5 million have not been able to make payment in the past year. That number is expected to grow as an additional 4 million borrowers are approaching default status.…
